KIRKUS REVIEW

A
catastrophic accident, the result of a derailed train, leaves Jake McAllister, only
a young boy, fatherless. He’s haunted by nightmares of the accident until a
beautiful girl shows up in his dreams and offers him the comfort he desperately
needs. Years later, Jake grows up to be a wealthy businessman but becomes
caught in a loveless relationship with heartless gold digger Elizabeth
Carstairs. For baffling reasons, Jake is incapable of seeing the full depth of
her depravity but also seems dimly aware of his lack of romantic enthusiasm for
her. Meanwhile, in a parallel plotline, Yvette Corvell suffers a deep loss when
her husband dies in a tragic car accident. She uses the insurance settlement money
to buy a ranch in Arizona and start a new life with her daughter, nearly 5-year-old
Brandi. One day a tire bursts on Yvette’s car, and she is serendipitously
rescued by Jake. He soon realizes that Yvette is a dead ringer for the girl who
starred in his youthful dreams. Once she is convinced Jake’s womanizing days
are behind him, the two begin a relationship and fall deeply in love. But
Elizabeth, bankrupt from maniacally profligate spending, refuses to let Jake go
without a fight. While some edge is given to the story by Elizabeth’s chilling
amorality, this is otherwise so sentimental a story it seems written for very
young adults. Debut author O’Donnell is irresistibly drawn to ostentatious
displays of treacly emotion. Brandi wonders out loud to a dinner table of
adults if her mother plans to find her a new father soon: “Since she got
me a new fish, can she get me a new daddy?” The plot’s pace happily quickens
when Elizabeth starts scheming to destroy Yvette. The author turns out to be extremely
adept at inventively capturing Elizabeth’s fathomless wickedness. The prose can
be a bit simplistic and is hampered by punctuation errors (for example, “Robert Johnson,
head of the land acquisition department said”).
The book is impossibly precious, which is simultaneously its principal virtue
and central vice.

More cute than romantic, this love
story should appeal to young teens.

Be the first to discover new talent!
Each week, our editors select the one author and one book they believe to be most worthy of your attention and highlight them in our Pro Connect email alert.
Sign up here to receive your FREE alerts.